The construction site of the A69, the future motorway which will link Castres (Tarn) to Toulouse (Haute-Garonne) continues to be at the heart of the controversy. While Julien Lassalle, candidate of the New Popular Front for the Legislatives, calls for a moratorium in the event of an election, opponents of La Voie Est Libre maintain that the current phase of work could allow a step backwards.
The issue of the A69, this future motorway which will link Castres (Tarn) to Toulouse (Haute-Garonne) continues to raise controversy and is also at the heart of the legislative election debate. In the program of the United Left, it is indicated that will be “decreed a moratorium on major highway infrastructure projects”. Will the A69 be affected as requested, since Tuesday June 25, by Julien Lassalle, candidate of the New Popular Front, in the 3rd constituency of Tarn?
For Carole Delga, the president of the Occitanie region, invited on the set of C à vous, Tuesday June 25, 2024, there is no question of it:
“The A 69 is an achievement, it is no longer a project. There are 80% of the earthworks that have been carried out, there are a third of the structures that have been built, 200 million euros paid to the companies, i.e. 50% of the total cost of the work.”
Carole Delga, president of the Occitanie Region
“Why not have written a moratorium except on the A69 which Carole Delga supports?”says host Anne-Elisabeth Lemoine. “Because that’s not how you make a program, you put principles on future road infrastructure projects, there will be a discussion, retorts the president. But the A69 issue is resolved! We need to stop lying to people, go there!”, as we discover in this video broadcast on X:
A statement which leads to a reaction of disappointment from one of the groups opposed to the A69 which denies: “We, members of the Saint Germain sans bitume collective (around a hundred members, 300 followers, working in conjunction with the groups opposed to bitumen and the motorway, and with associations fighting for life), are once again disappointed, even devastated by your positions, associated with your connection with the concrete and bitumen lobby, they wrote in a letter addressed to the President of the Region, made public. The NFP moratorium applies to the A69.”, they assure.
In the south of Tarn, are the works on the A69 as advanced as the support of the concessionary company for the site, Atosca, which the La Voie Est Libre collective disputes? To find out, two of its members who are opposed to it went into the field with one of our teams.
From the sky, the route of the future highway begins to take shape. No bitumen, but a track still in the ground. Clear lines in certain places interrupted by the absence of construction site where nature is still present.
In Castres, work on a future interchange should have started last October. “We should have had a roundabout, a bridge over the highway, and on the other side another roundabout and around ten small structures, advances Thomas Digard, member of La Voie Est Libre who, with Geoffrey Tarroux, has been monitoring the progress of the project since its launch in March 2023. And there, we are at the archaeological excavations which ended a few weeks ago and we are at the beginning of earthworks, and the implementation of the works.”
For La Voie est Libre activists, the delay is piling up. It would be a year in total. Of the 44 km of road to be created, 17 would be free of any work.
“It’s really an illustration of the lies of the concessionaire who want us to believe that work is being done on 100% of the route. This is totally false, here there are wetlands, there is a bridge that does not has still not been done even though 10 months ago it should have been done. They are considerably behind schedule.
Geoffroy Tarroux, member of La Voie est Libre
Nine areas still to be deforested, residents to be expropriated, archaeological excavations to be completed…
But faced with this observation, the concessionaire remains firm: the opening date of the highway does not change and remains set for the end of 2025.
“The schedule adapts to all the constraints that may be encountered during execution, in particular those linked to opposition in certain places on the site, summarizes Walter Guyonvarch, director of the Design and Construction Group, who specifies:
“We are adapting the scheduling of our different workshops. So as to be able to use them more efficiently and that is why there are certain construction site areas which have not been started, but it is for the benefit of other construction sectors which are more advanced.”
Walter Guyonvarch, director of the Design and Construction Group.
Last May, Atosca told us that: “Some things are not visible. Most engineering works are pre-constructed and stored in factories”. Same case for hydraulic works: “Out of 156 in total, 63 units are already installed and 110 are stored, ready to be installed,” justified the dealer.
Read also: A69 motorway: the progress of the work is a “myth” according to opponents, Atosca maintains that it is on time
The company announces that the construction site should intensify this summer. 250 machines and 1,200 workers should be mobilized.
Several appeals by opponents are still pending. One of them has just been rejected by the Council of State.
